The Queen’s Beloved Corgis Played A Special Role At Her Windsor Service

Like Paddington and his marmalade sandwiches, the Queen and her beloved corgis have shared a key connection throughout her 70-year reign. Her Majesty has had more than 30 corgis during her time on the throne, housing her much-loved pets in a dedicated room at Buckingham Palace, and treating them to swanky doggy meals cooked up by a chef. It’s only fitting, therefore, that the pampered pooches played a key role on Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral day.

Following a 23-mile procession from Westminster Abbey, the Queen’s coffin made its way to Windsor Castle for the committal service at St. George’s Chapel. And Her Majesty’s two remaining corgis, Muick and Sandy, were waiting patiently outside for the hearse to arrive. Accompanied by two footmen, the dogs were seen with their eyes firmly on the road as their former owner travelled to her final resting place.

The late Queen’s love affair with corgis first began when she was seven — the royal’s first ever dog was officially named Rozavel Golden Eagle (yep, really). When breeders learned he was destined to live with the Queen’s father, the Duke of York, who would later become King George VI, they nicknamed the dog Dookie, and it stuck. “Dookie was horribly behaved, biting courtiers and visitors with abandon,” reports the BBC. “But that didn't stop a press photo of Elizabeth and the tiny tyrant charming the public and raising the Pembroke corgi's profile.”

Many other beloved corgis followed — Susan was gifted to the Queen for her eighteenth birthday, and the likes of Lady Jane, Disco, and Martin later joined the gang. In 2015, Her Majesty stopped breeding corgis altogether, as she was reportedly keen to not leave any dogs behind after she died.

Prince Andrew gifted Muick and Sandy to the Queen after Prince Philip’s passing. According to the Queen’s aide, Angela Kelly, the two dogs were a "constant joy" for the Queen during lockdown. "I was worried they would get under the Queen's feet, but they have turned out to be a godsend,” Kelly wrote in HELLO! “They are beautiful and great fun, and the Queen often takes long walks with them in Home Park.” Prince Andrew will now take care of the pooches following Her Majesty’s passing.